Moving Forward
by 2queens1prince
Summary: Elizabeth has decided that a long term relationship is not in the cards for her. What happens when she is befriended by a handsome man with a girlfriend?
1. Chapter 1

AN: Eventually there will be a lilacmermaid prompt in here, but it took a few chapters to get to it. I hope you enjoy this latest multi-chapter.

The first time she saw him was over Labor Day weekend. There were several students hanging around the Union. She assumed most of them lived far away. Classes had only started a couple weeks ago. Some people couldn't afford to make a trip home so soon. She figured most of them had homes to go to. Surely no one was in the same boat she was.

She didn't see him for a while, not until that four day long weekend in October. Fall break, they called it. There were definitely fewer people around this time. She guessed that people had made friends by now and felt comfortable visiting someone's home if they couldn't make it back to their own. He was still there. She saw him sitting in the corner of the cafe in the Student Union sipping coffee and reading The Cider House Rules. He was handsome, slouched down in his chair, his legs stretched out, his feet propped on the chair on the opposite side of the table.

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the entire University emptied. After her class, she walked to the market several blocks away and picked up the essentials-cereal and milk, granola bars, peanut butter, bread, a package of Oreos and a couple chocolate bars. Depositing her groceries in her room, she decided to make a quick run to the library and get a few books. She could pass many hours with her nose in a book. It would help the long weekend go by faster. After choosing, she made her way to the check out desk with her pile of books and there he was.

He caught movement in his peripheral vision and turned. He smiled. He was very handsome. "Not going home for Thanksgiving?" he asked.

She ignored the sharp pain of loss that radiated through her chest and replied, "I am home," and she smiled.

He looked surprised. "Me too," he said. He finished checking his books out and waited for her. "My name's Henry McCord. Would you mind if we walked back to campus together?"

She nodded, "I wouldn't mind at all, I'm Elizabeth Adams." They fell into step with each other and didn't speak for a full block. Finally, Elizabeth mustered her courage. "Are you a senior?"

"First year grad student." She was going to ask the follow up question, but he beat her to it. "Religious studies. You?"

"Freshman. Math major."

"I find it interesting that you can't find anywhere to go for holidays," he said, surveying her.

"Who says I can't? Maybe I'm just not interested in going anywhere."

He nodded, "My apologies." She dropped her head and watched her feet plod one in front of the the other. In a weird way, she found that to be symbolic. She physically could push her body forward, but her heart, now that stubborn thing stayed far behind, years behind.

"What about you? You look like the kind of guy that could find an invitation if he wanted one."

"I used to, but at some point, I got tired of trying to fit into someone else's family. Maybe I'll make my own one day." He stopped in front of an apartment building at the edge of campus. "You live in the dorms, right?" He didn't wait for an answer, but continued on. "You haven't had to do it yet, but staying in the dorms for several days when you are completely alone sucks, so if you get bored, feel free to drop by. If nothing else, I have a stove and I am cooking lunch tomorrow. It will beat the cereal and chips you have in your room. Apartment 212." He trotted up the walk, but turned around at the door, and smiled. "It was nice to meet you Elizabeth."

Elizabeth didn't even get a chance to respond. She stood rooted to the sidewalk for a full minute before continuing her path back to her own room. She dismissed Henry's words. She had been doing the alone thing for a number of years. She'd be fine. When she got back to her room, she ate a bowl of cereal and curled up in her bed and read until she fell asleep.

Elizabeth woke early Thursday morning, much earlier than she would've liked. The dorm, which always held some sort of annoying background noise, was eerily quiet. She swore she could hear her heartbeat. She went down to the bathroom thinking about how nice it would be not to have to wait to take a shower. What she hadn't counted on was the 30 minute wait for the water to warm to a level that was somewhat tolerable.

After a lukewarm shower and a granola bar, Elizabeth crawled into bed and read for a while. She felt like it should be close to lunch, so she pulled out the cereal and looked at the clock. 9:18. "What?" she said, and the sound and volume of her own voice caught her off guard. She removed the towel from her head, fixed her hair and got dressed. Time 9:36. She straightened her room and made her bed. Time 9:48. Elizabeth groaned. "Could time move slower?" she asked aloud. Finally, she sorted her laundry and took a load down to the first floor and started it. She hung out in the dorm lounge reading until the load was done and then she moved it to the dryer. She finished the book and went to check on the clothes-still damp. Time 10:42. This was painful. Meandering around the lounge, Elizabeth straightened the furniture and looked out into the empty parking lot until her clothes were finally dry. She folded them, carried them upstairs and put them away. Time 11:14.

"Okay, this is for shit," she muttered, sliding her coat on, she left her room. Elizabeth made it halfway down the hall before she realized that she didn't want to show up somewhere empty handed, so she went back and fetched the unopened package of Oreos to take with her.

Time 11:30. She stood outside Apartment 212 and knocked. Chewing her bottom lip, she almost left, wondering briefly if Henry's invitation yesterday was some sort of cruel joke to see if she would show up looking all lonely and needy. The door opened and Henry couldn't hide his surprise. "Elizabeth! I didn't think I'd see you." She shuffled back.

"I shouldn't have bothered you. I'm sorry." She turned to go.

Henry reached out and touched her arm. "I didn't mean that I didn't want to see you. Honestly, I kind of guessed that you'd be stubborn enough to suffer through just to prove you could. Really, I'm happy to have some company. Come in."

"I am stubborn, but I've already cleaned my room, finished my laundry and read one of my books, and it's not even noon yet." She looked up at him. "You aren't some sort of serial killer are you?"

"Yes, I am, but it's cool. I take off all holidays. You're totally safe until tomorrow," Henry flashed her a bright smile and Elizabeth laughed.

"Ha, ha. Very funny," she smirked. She handed him the Oreos and shrugged off her coat, which he took and hung on a hook near the door. "I thought I'd bring something. By the way, it smells incredible. What are you making?"

"Roasted chicken and vegetables, and salad. Ice cream, and Oreos," he said, holding up the package, "For dessert."

Elizabeth's mouth watered from the aroma alone. "And you are sure you don't mind me crashing your meal?"

"Not at all. Sharing actually keeps me from eating leftovers all weekend." He gestured toward the couch. "Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink? We have about thirty minutes before the chicken is done."

"I'm fine. Thanks." She sat and he joined her. "So, what does a person do with a master's in religious studies? Some sort of ministry or something?"

"Well, what some people do and what I plan to do are vastly different. I'm at UVA on an ROTC scholarship. I'll be going into the Marines when I graduate. After that, I think I'd like to teach, maybe do some writing. We'll see, but so far, I have the next 8 or so years planned for me."

She was intrigued and they talked at length about his decision to go into the military and how he viewed it and the morality of military intervention. Henry was impressed by the depth of her questions and her general interest in the subject. He asked about her choice of major and they talked about her acclimation to UVA, her professors and classes.

Lunch was eaten, dishes were washed and put away and they were back on the couch, with not one awkward silence. She spied the Scrabble game stored on the shelf under the TV and asked if they could play. By the end of the second game, Henry had come to the conclusion that Elizabeth was one of the the most intelligent people he'd ever met.

They were chatting over the game, when he asked the question. "So, how come you stay here instead of going home?" He knew immediately that he had crossed a line. The look that covered her face was nothing short of devastation, and Henry backpedaled quickly, trying to take the focus off of Elizabeth.

"For me, my father and I just didn't see eye to eye. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps and he's a good man, but I don't want to have his life and it offended him. He couldn't get past it. My mom would never go against my father, so when I left, that was pretty much it. I was on my own."

"So you just left? When was the last time you saw them?" Elizabeth was stunned.

"When I left home before my freshman year, so a little over five years I guess."

"Five years is a long time for either of you to be pissed about going to college instead of following your dad into his line of work." The look she gave him was almost pleading, and it unnerved him. "I bet if you called they would be happy to hear from you "

"Why should I be the one that makes the first move? He was the one who was being unreasonable and my mom fell in line, supporting him like she always has. They can come to me." Henry towed his ideological line. She wasn't the only one who could be stubborn.

"And if they never do?" she asked. "Are you just going to to write your entire family off forever? You don't really want to do that."

"I don't care." Henry said with finality.

Suddenly, Elizabeth couldn't breathe. "I think I need to go," she said as she stood. She rushed to grab her coat. "Thank you for lunch. It was nice." Her words trailed off her as she scurried out the door and disappeared. He heard the outside door fall shut.

Henry was surprised by the sudden turn of events. He reached for his own coat and followed Elizabeth. With it being dark, he'd planned on walking her home anyway. He chased after her.

Elizabeth walked quickly in the direction of her dorm. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she thought about how her world had been upended and how she would give anything for the opportunity to have her family back and Henry was throwing his away over a silly argument and his own stupid pride.

"Hey! Elizabeth wait!" He called out, but she didn't stop. He caught up to her after the second block. "Wait. What happened? Why did you leave?" He stepped in front of her, stopping her progress. He was shocked to see that she was crying. "Why are you so upset?"

"You are a fool Henry McCord, and I'm just not sure I can be around someone who places so little value of their family."

"Oh really?" Henry went on the defensive. "That's rich coming from someone who isn't with her family either."

"My situation is not of my own choosing and if I could change it, I would. Now if you'll excuse me," she pushed past him.

Henry followed her and stopped her at the door to the dorm. "Why can't you change it?" he asked.

"Because I can't bring people back from the dead. Goodbye Henry!" Elizabeth stepped inside and let the door fall shut.

The oxygen was sucked from his lungs and he stood motionless. _Dead?_ "Damnit," he muttered. He had screwed this situation up royally. He stood in the same spot for quite some time, mulling over the situation. Finally, he turned and walked slowly home wondering if it was possible to mend the bridge he'd just obliterated.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thank you for all of the positive feedback. It overwhelms me that people actually enjoy reading what I write, let alone follow a story and get excited for updates. I just want everyone to know that I am very appreciative and your support keeps me going. So, onward to chapter two.

Chapter 2

Elizabeth could barely see through her tears by the time she made it to her room. She threw herself down on the bed and sobbed. More than an hour passed before she calmed down to the point of being able to move. Elizabeth changed into her pajamas and went down to the bathroom to wash her face. The reflection that stared back at her was foreign. She didn't even know who the person in the mirror was. She was forced to look away. Trudging back to her room, Elizabeth crawled under the covers. Her pillow was soaked with tears, but she didn't even bother to turn it over, knowing there would be more to come.

The sun blasted in her window the next morning. She closed her eyes against the invasion and pulled her blanket over her head and lay, waiting for sleep to come again. It never did. Finally she gave up and sat up at the edge of the bed. Elizabeth felt horrible. Her eyes were itchy and they stung, Her throat was dry and she felt like there was an anvil sitting on her chest. She stood, and just that action sent pain radiating through her body.

Elizabeth would argue vehemently with anyone who said that grieving didn't cause physical pain. But what exactly was she grieving, her own situation or Henry's? She felt certain that by this point in time, she'd come to terms with her own predicament. If it was Henry's, why did she care? She wasn't sure.

She walked slowly down to the bathroom and turned the water on first, hoping that the shower would be somewhat warm by the time that she finished all of her other business. To call the water warm was a stretch, but she was certainly awake by the end of it. Wrapping her robe tightly around her she left the bathroom and walked down the hall. There was a steady thumping that caused her to wrinkle her forehead in thought. As she descended the stairs, she realized that someone was knocking, or maybe beating, on the front door.

If she'd been thinking clearly, Elizabeth would have ignored it, or checked in the peephole to see who it was, but she wasn't thinking at all and blindly opened the door. "Henry," she gasped. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on you. Last night you were upset and I caused it, and I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry." He bowed his head and held out a bag. "And I brought you the ice cream and Oreos because we didn't get to have dessert last night."

An explainable calm enveloped Elizabeth, and a small smile curled at the corners of her mouth and she stepped back. "Come on in." She walked him into the lounge. "Let me run up and change. I'll be right back." A few minutes later, she came down the stairs, her still damp hair braided down her back, wearing gray sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Rounding the corner, she saw Henry standing in front of the window, looking out. The early afternoon sun filtered in around him, highlighting his muscular build, protruding Adam's apple, defined jaw, wispy brown hair that she was sure would curl if he let it grow much longer.

A warmth radiated from her chest throughout her body and she was suddenly aware that she was physically attracted to this man. She shook her head to clear those thoughts. Henry might think he wanted to make a second family, but she had no such desire. She firmly planned to reside in the boat she was currently in. Her parents were dead, and her brother had no real desire to be around her unless absolutely necessary. It was easier this way. No messy feelings, no chance of getting hurt or losing someone again.

Henry waited in the lounge while she changed. He sat, then paced, and finally stood at the window. He had tried to figure out what he was going to say. He couldn't say that he understood, or that he hoped it would get better. Everything he thought just seemed trite and even though he didn't know Elizabeth well, he didn't want to add to her emotional burden.

He caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and found her standing in the doorway. He turned, "Elizabeth, I-" he started, but was interrupted.

"Let's just pretend that last night didn't happen, or at least the end of it. There isn't anything that either of us can say to change the other's situation, so let's just not worry about it, alright?"

"Agreed, but only on the condition that you accept my apology. I was running my mouth about something that I didn't know anything about. That was arrogant and overreaching, and I'm sorry I acted like I knew your situation."

She nodded, "Apology accepted. So what kind of ice cream you got there Mr. McCord?"

"Peanut Butter fudge ripple, which kind of begs to be eaten with Oreos."

"Most certainly," she grinned. She crossed the room and they sat down on the couch and ate and talked and watched a bit of TV and talked some more.

The sun started sinking quickly and Henry glanced at his watch, 5:00. "Have you eaten anything except ice cream today?"

"I had Oreos," she said sheepishly. "They're a grain, right?"

Henry laughed. "Not hardly. I was going to make dinner. Do you think I could talk you into joining me?"

"You could try," she said, her voice suddenly taking on a flirty tone that she wasn't comfortable with.

"Pizza. Homemade pizza." Henry's voice was low and sultry. She curiously wondered how he could make the word pizza sound sensual.

"Sold," she said. "Let me get my things." She dashed upstairs and grabbed her purse and coat. They walked a fair amount of the way in silence. "You're pretty good at Scrabble." she said. She cringed, "_that sounded so stupid_," she thought.

"You're better. In fact, I think you are the best player I've ever seen. Do you play a lot?" Henry asked. She was thankful that Henry was kind enough to at least act interested in the conversation.

"Not really. But I read the dictionary sometimes." Henry stopped in his tracks and looked at her.

"Really? You read the dictionary? Like front to back or pick a page or maybe letter of the day?" He sported a goofy grin and Elizabeth couldn't help but to laugh. She playfully pulled on his arm to keep him walking.

"Don't tease. It was this weird coping mechanism I had, especially in middle school and high school. Studying words took my mind off of other things." He studied her carefully, and Elizabeth became uncomfortable and tried to change the direction of the conversation. "Friends, arguments, bullies, that sort of thing. I just happen to have a decent memory." She shrugged it off. "I don't do it much anymore."

"Other things, huh?" She could tell his tone of voice changed and his intent was clear.

"Yeah, things I don't want to talk about, okay?" She hoped that was the end of it. She hated telling people, or even hinting, about her parents' deaths. It totally changed the focus of the relationship. Suddenly she became their next pet project. Make Lizzie more social. Find Lizzie a man. Get Lizzie laid. It was one of the reason she left Lizzie behind. She was Elizabeth now, for the most part, although there were a couple people who frequently called her Liz. She furled her lip. She didn't bother to tell them though. Elizabeth wasn't a person who put much energy into relationships that weren't going to mean much to her long term.

Henry watched Elizabeth as they walked and it was almost like he could see the wheels turning. When she didn't think anyone was looking, she wore her emotions on her face. He paid attention to the pain, embarrassment, sadness, frustration. They all came and went and then blank. She'd processed whatever it was he supposed.

"What do you like on your pizza?" Henry asked, hoping that he had things she would eat.

"I'll eat pretty much anything, but if given a choice, I'd prefer to skip green things," she said and Henry gave her a thumbs up.

Before she knew it, she was sitting on the end of Henry's bar, watching him make the pizza dough from scratch. As he turned and kneaded it, Elizabeth commented, "You must be able to rid yourself of a lot of stress doing that." He laughed and pulled her off the edge to join him. Within seconds, her sleeves were pushed up to her elbows and he hands were covered in dough. Henry added more flour and showed Elizabeth how to work it in. "This is satisfying," she murmured as she pushed the dough down and folded it over, again and again until it was just the right amount of elastic. That was Henry's term. She had no idea how to tell if dough was elastic, or why that would be a good thing.

Henry set it aside to rise and then got some Italian sausage to brown and instructed Elizabeth to cut some onions, mushrooms and peppers, "for his half," he'd explained. By the time she'd finished that, Henry had a sauce simmering and it was time to shape the dough. Henry cut the now rather large ball of dough in half and gave each of them a piece. They shaped their dough into something that might be construed as a circle and put them in the oven to start baking. After a few minutes, they topped their crusts and returned the pizzas to the oven.

"Do you cook like this all of the time, or is it just because you have a little more free time with the holiday?" she asked.

He grinned. "I like to cook for people. I often have people over so I can cook for them. I'm not much for leftovers though, so when I'm by myself I make easy things." They cleaned up and finished just as the pizza was done. Henry quickly cut it and they took slices to the couch where they turned on the Packers/Seahawks game.

Henry wouldn't have guessed Elizabeth as a sports enthusiast, but she most certainly knew what was going on on the football field. She cheered, made calls ahead of the officials, and high fived Henry. She said she wasn't a particular fan of either team, but it was evident that the Packers got her support because of her disdain for the Seahawks. She was elated when they won.

Henry sat back and watched Elizabeth, and he found that he was at ease with her. She was smart, but the draw wasn't just her intelligence. It was her desire to learn about new things, about people and what drives them, and what others find interesting. She was funny, sliding in silly one liners or making completely appropriate yet hilarious facial expressions. She was pretty, but when she laughed, her beauty went to a whole other level. It was almost like she was likeable when he met her, but everything one could see superficially was actually ten times that once you got to know her.

She turned and looked at him, still smiling, and in that moment he wanted to kiss her. No, he didn't just want to kiss her. He wanted feel her pressed against his body. He wanted to know the kinds of sounds she made when she was touched in just the right way, when _he_ touched her. Henry blushed. He absolutely could not be thinking about those kinds of things. Elizabeth was completely off limits. There would be nothing that happened there.

Elizabeth noticed the change immediately. He'd been laughing with her as they watched the game. Then he went silent and she could feel him watching her, she turned and smiled and she wasn't sure she could read his thoughts until he blushed. Then, she knew what exactly what Henry was thinking, and she honestly couldn't say she was opposed, at least on a casual basis. "Henry, " she murmured.

Panic set in. He didn't know how to respond, but the look she gave him told him she might be interested. "I have a girlfriend," he said suddenly.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: I wasn't quite aware that I left the second chapter on such a cliffhanger. Sorry to those I left hanging. I'll try to post the next chapter a little earlier tomorrow.

Chapter 3

"_I have a girlfriend,_" _he said._

Elizabeth wasn't sure why, but she felt like she'd been punched in the gut. "Oh?" she said, a little too quickly. She tried desperately to recover. "Cool. What's her name?" She shifted back a little further into the corner of the couch, putting as much space as possible between them.

"Rochana Anand. She's a senior philosophy major," he said. Elizabeth studied him.

"And, that's all you've got? She has no other redeeming qualities? How long have you been dating? Come on McCord spill it." She grinned at him, pushing past the awkward moment.

"She has plenty of redeeming qualities, thank you and we've been dating almost two years." He laundry listed the things that were obvious. Rochana was smart and passionate about her causes, particularly regarding issues with the politics in Thailand, her home country. He prattled on, mostly about things that everyone who knew her would see. He skipped the things that bothered him-her lack of forethought for the consequences of her actions, how she spun things to make the situation benefit her, how he felt that she sometimes took advantage of him.

"Rochana seems like a great person," Elizabeth said. "Is that a forever thing or just a right now thing?"

Henry opened his mouth to answer, but suddenly it wasn't that easy, so he said, "At my age, everything has to do with the future."

Elizabeth laughed, "Yes, at the ripe old age of 23."

"I'm almost 24," he corrected. She held her hands up in concession. "Are you seeing anyone?" he asked.

"I see people daily," she deadpanned. He shook his head in defeat making her laugh. "That's not something I'm looking for now," she said. And thought "_or ever."_

They pulled out the Sorry! game and played a couple times, laughing at each other each time they sent the other back to start. It was after 10pm when she mentioned leaving and Henry insisted on walking her back to her room. They walked quietly most of the way and finally Henry asked, "What do you want for lunch tomorrow?"

She dropped her head. "I'm not sure this is a good idea. Listen, I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea, especially Rochana. I'm not the kind of person that wants to be seen as a _that_ girl." Henry gave her a confused look. "I just don't want to be the cause of any problems between you and your girlfriend."

Henry nodded his understanding. "Elizabeth, Rochana and I are honest with one another. She has guy friends and I have friends who are women and that's just what they are. I trust her and she trusts me. The two of us being friends isn't a problem." He grinned at her. "Unless you just can't keep your hands off me." He quirked his eyebrows at her and she gave him a shove.

"I'm telling you, the struggle is real."

And so the weekend went by much the same as the first two days. Elizabeth met Rochana on Sunday evening when she came back from her friend's home, where she spent Thanksgiving. Other than the undeniable pang of jealousy that swept over her when she stepped into Henry's arms and he kissed her, the two women got along fine. Elizabeth saw what Henry saw in Rochana. She was gorgeous and smart and focused, but there was something about her that needled at Elizabeth, although Elizabeth couldn't pinpoint what that something was.

Elizabeth was pleasantly surprised when Henry called her out of the blue the following week and asked if she wanted to grab a coffee with him. They met in the Student Union and had a nice conversation which led to the two studying together at the library several times before finals. Then it was finals week. She called him Sunday night to wish him luck, especially on one paper he'd been struggling with, but he didn't answer, so she left a message. He never called her back.

The first day, Elizabeth blew it off. Henry had a lot going on. She'd been at the library a lot. Maybe he'd called and just didn't leave a message. By Wednesday, she wondered if she'd made him mad and when Friday rolled around, she was furious with herself. She'd let herself feel something for someone, and damned if she didn't get screwed. Henry was just her friend, but the only friend she'd had since Joey in high school, the friendship that couldn't really be because of who he was. Evidently being a Bahraini prince with a western friend who was a girl was a no-no. She'd felt the same devastation when that friendship went nowhere and she swore she wouldn't do it again, and now look at her. Would she ever learn?

For Henry, it began that night on the couch, and it started innocently enough, he'd see something and he would wonder what Elizabeth would have to say about it or there was the night that he tried a new Chinese dish and his first thought was "Elizabeth would like this" even though he was sitting across from Rochana. By the time finals week rolled around, Elizabeth consumed all of his thoughts. She called him to wish him well, but he couldn't bring himself to call her back. He was conflicted.

Henry withdrew from everyone. He needed to focus on finishing his work instead dealing with the Rochana/Elizabeth situation. He turned in his last paper Thursday morning of finals week and he went back to his apartment with the intention of sleeping, but he couldn't. Instead he paced.

He loved Rochana, or he'd told her that, a long time ago. Henry thought back to when Elizabeth asked him if Rochana was a forever thing. He'd purposely evaded the question even then.

The fact was that he while was comfortable with Rochana, he wasn't necessarily in love with her. But, the flip side was that he had spent so long with her, perhaps the new had worn off. Maybe he just needed to put some effort into their relationship. Admittedly, he had been coasting the past few months. It was no wonder that Elizabeth had taken up residence in his thoughts. He just needed to focus on what he already had.

Rochana was headed back to Thailand to spend time with family over the break, but she didn't leave until the following Tuesday. Henry had the perfect opportunity to get his head on straight. He would spend several days just focused on Rochana and confirm that he was in the right place.

When they were together, Henry was all in and had almost convinced himself that he was, indeed, in love with Rochana. It was only when things turned physical that he couldn't get his mind on board. He finally rolled out of the bed, leaving Rochana wondering what had happened. She followed him to the living room. "What's going on with you Henry?"

"I don't know." He sank down on the couch. "I'm questioning us."

She narrowed her eyes. "Questioning what exactly?"

"Whether or not we will last. Do I love you in a forever love kind of way or has that just somehow morphed into some kind of friendship love?" She shifted her weight to one foot and folded her arms across her chest. Henry had seen her do this several times. Rochana was about to tear him to shreds.

"Is that all I've become?" she asked, her tone more hurt than angry, which surprised Henry. "Did you find someone else? Someone better than me? A gorgeous blonde maybe?"

"I wasn't, I mean I'm not looking for anyone else. I swear. I haven't done anything with anyone. I'm with you, but I don't know that I want to continue to be with you. I don't think it will work long-term. When I go into the military, you aren't going to want to follow me around nor are you going to be happy with being alone while I'm serving."

"Well, I could tell you that your mind has been elsewhere the last six months and I was hoping that it was just the stress of school and work, but now that you've voiced your reservations, I agree. It's time we end it." She wiped the tears from her eyes and disappeared into the bedroom. Moments later she emerged fully clothed with a duffle bag. "I grabbed what I knew was mine. If you find anything else, toss it in a box and I'll pick it up when I get back from my trip."

Henry stood and walked her to the door. "I'm really sorry. I tried. I wish you every happiness Rochana. I'm just sorry I couldn't give it to you." He kissed her cheek and she left.

Henry sat back down in the chair. Two years of his life was spent with Rochana and he was sure he loved her, but in that moment, knowing that he was no longer tied to her, he felt such relief and for that he felt incredibly guilty. What was he doing? Was he going to show up on Elizabeth's doorstep and profess his what, infatuation, with her? She'd already said she wasn't in the market. Even if she was, it wasn't smart to jump out of one relationship into another.

Going against everything he told himself, he picked up the phone and called Elizabeth. She would be rational. She would set him straight and then he could move on.

Elizabeth was curled up in bed with a book when the phone rang. She looked at it in disbelief and finally deciding that it was probably a wrong number, leaned over to pick it up. "Hello," she said.

"Hi."

"Henry. I'm surprised to hear from you." Her tone was clipped.

"I know you're probably irritated with me and rightly so. Do you think I could come over so we could talk?"

"I wasn't aware that we were still talking." Elizabeth's tone didn't change. Henry sighed.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I just had stuff that I had to deal with."

"You could've told me that or maybe since I thought we were friends, you could've talked to me about it. Maybe I could've helped you work through it. It's obvious that you were more important to me than I was you. I can't do this Henry. No, I won't do this." He heard the click followed by the buzzing of a phone off the hook. He held the receiver in his hand for a long time.

This was something he hadn't considered. It was only a week. Sure they were friends, and if his thoughts were any indication, he hoped that someday they would be more. He didn't think she would really notice his absence. Other than Thanksgiving, they only saw each other a few times.

Henry buried his head in his hands. Of course she would notice his absence. Her family was dead. It was something that was never mentioned after that first night, She said to forget it and so he had, but now that it was staring him in the face, he realized how hurt Elizabeth would have been by being put off like that. Most people might have been a little unsettled or maybe even not thought twice about it, but most people weren't Elizabeth.

He jumped from his spot and ran out the door. Henry ran the whole way to Elizabeth's dorm. Standing outside in the snow, he banged on the door. When he waited and Elizabeth didn't come to the door, Henry stood quietly for a moment, punched a sequence of numbers on the keypad and turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. He grinned and gave thanks that security hadn't bothered to change the door codes since he had lived in this building three years ago.

Henry was pretty sure he knew where he could find Elizabeth based on which room light was on. He headed to the third floor and walked down the hallway and stopped in front of the fourth door. He knocked softly. There was some shuffling from the other side of the door, and the lock clicked. "Elizabeth, it's Henry. Can I please talk to you?" The lock clicked again and the door opened.

Elizabeth gave Henry a hard stare before shoving him backwards. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" she yelled. "You scared the crap out of me. Do you not understand that I'm here by myself? How did you get in here anyway?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I was knocking on the outside door and you didn't hear it or you wouldn't answer or whatever, but I had to talk to you. I had to tell you how sorry I am. I want to fix this."

"I already told you, I'm not doing this Henry. I can't be your friend Henry. I said I wasn't going to and then I did and I got hurt. I put too much of myself on the line and I just get let down. Please, just leave me alone," Elizabeth begged.

"I broke up with Rochana," Henry said.

Elizabeth's eyes doubled in size. "You did what?" She shook her head, like doing that might make the situation make more sense. "Why?"

"Because she wasn't my forever. I do love her, but not like that, and it was wrong to string her along. She said she saw it coming." Henry leaned back against the wall in the hallway and slid down it.

"This past week, I was trying to focus on my finals instead of my mixed feelings and this weekend, I wanted to get back what I thought I had with Rochana, but it didn't work. I was trying to force something that wasn't there."

Elizabeth watched Henry shrink down and she was so confused in that moment. She was angry and scared (he couldn't possibly get how knocking on her door when she was the only one in the building was the dumbest thing he could ever do), but at the same time, she only wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him that it would be alright.

Henry continued, "It wasn't until I talked to you tonight that I realized exactly how stupid I am. Please let me in. Let me try to explain, to apologize, something. I have to make you understand."

Elizabeth leaned against her doorframe, staring at her bare feet wondering if there would ever be a time when her heart would be willing to move forward like her feet did. She liked Henry and she craved his friendship, but was she able to put that hurt aside and let him in again? She found herself stepping back and gesturing him inside. He scrambled to his feet and stepped inside and she closed the door behind him.

Henry's eyes swept the room. It was neat and tidy. He could tell she'd been bored. He was ready to make a joke about her needing to come spend some time with him when he saw the open dictionary laying in the middle of her bed. Every emotion that Henry had been holding at bay since meeting Elizabeth bubbled out in a geyser. He sat on her desk chair and buried his head in his hands and sobbed.

Elizabeth's trepidation about the situation dissolved as she watched Henry completely fall apart in front of her. She pulled up a chair next to him and put a hand on his arm and waited it out. Henry finally pulled himself together enough to speak. "I was so wrapped up in my own shit that I failed to see what it would do to you. You told me and I ignored it and I hurt you deeply, and I am so sorry. If I were you I wouldn't forgive me, but I'm selfish and I want your friendship now and someday I want to be your forever. Do you think that you could let me try again?"

Elizabeth was confused by so many things Henry said, she wasn't sure where to start. "How could you know Henry? I told you nothing."

"No. You told me everything and I was just too self involved to pay attention. On Thanksgiving, you knocked on my door and were ready to leave, expecting to be turned away. Your family is dead, and you stay alone. You study words to keep your mind from focusing on the hurt. You were worried that appearing too close would bother Rochana. You were shocked that I called and asked you for coffee, and when you reached out to me, I didn't respond. I should've seen and I should've called you back just to let you know that I was working on some things. I never meant to hurt you like I did."

Elizabeth pulled away. "It wasn't a big deal."

"Don't minimize your feelings with me." She looked up, thinking she would provide some sort of explanation on the fly, but he stood and picked up the dictionary, glancing over the page. "You just have trouble with the meaning of parade?"

"Don't," she said, her voice sharp, full of warning, and Henry slumped back into the chair. She continued. "I was mostly just mad at myself for thinking that I could have a friend. I've been burned before and I swore it wouldn't happen again, and I let it. What happened with Rochana?"

"I don't love her, and I haven't for a long time. I let it go on because I was comfortable and didn't want to rock the boat, and then the boat got rocked and I wouldn't consider cheating on her, so I dropped the distraction and I tried hard to get back what Rochana and I had, but it just wasn't there."

"You dropped the distraction?" Elizabeth studied him and he waited to see if she would understand.

"You were the distraction. You are all I've been able to think about since I met you. And I did drop you on purpose, but I didn't understand how much it would hurt you. In my mind, it wasn't permanent, just a few days until I fixed things with Rochana and I knew she and I were okay, then I would explain to you and we would be fine."

"That was presumptuous."

"It was," Henry agreed. "But I apologized because I'm sorry."

"I'm your forever?" she asked, going back to his first statement.

"I think so, but not right now. Now I'd just like us to be friends."

"I don't know that I want that. Ever. It's been a long road to get to where I am. I have no desire to ever travel down it again."

"I know. I'm still hopeful."


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Thanks for all of the positive reviews you've left. I'm all smiles.

Chapter 4

Henry left that night only after persuading Elizabeth to let him take her out for breakfast the following day. She forgave him over French toast the next morning and they started over. They both had jobs over break so they made arrangements to see each other a few times a week. She usually hung out at his place just because there was more space, but they took a few hikes and she dragged him kicking and screaming to a catch and release trout park nearby.

Winter break passed and classes resumed. Elizabeth didn't see Rochana, but knew she'd been around, and Henry never spoke of her. There was a particular day in which Henry was down and she finally badgered him enough that he told her that Rochana had tried to win him back and she was angry that he wasn't interested. Henry didn't like that he was hurting her, and it made him feel guilty, even though he knew that they would never last long term. Elizabeth did what friends do. She took him to the movies to see Platoon and they ate great quantities of popcorn while soldiers got shot up.

It was early March when Elizabeth didn't show up for her English class, the one that was held right next to the Religions in the Far East seminar that he taught. To Henry's knowledge, Elizabeth had never missed a class, so he assumed she was sick. He went over to check on her, when he knocked on her door, he could tell that her "go away" was full of sadness and tears, not illness. "Elizabeth, come on, open the door,"

"Henry, no, please, just go," she choked out.

He sighed and pounded his head on the door. "Look, either you open this door or I'm going to find an RA and tell them that you're in trouble and they will come open it, and then you'll have to explain it to them to get them to go away." He waited and was just about to go find the RA when the door opened.

There had only been a couple times in his life when Henry was as heartbroken as he was when he saw Elizabeth. Elizabeth always possessed an air of aloofness that made her seem taller, bigger than she was. The Elizabeth that people saw was confident and sure of herself. This Elizabeth, that now stood before him was small and frail and-broken. He really tried to come up with a better word to describe it, but she really just looked shattered.

Without speaking, he wrapped his arms around her and walked her inside enough that he could close the door behind them. He shrugged his backpack off, letting it fall with a heavy thump and then shucked his coat off. Henry moved to the bed and sat in the middle with his back against the wall, he tugged her hand indicating that she should sit with him. He was surprised when Elizabeth climbed into his lap and curled up against his chest. He pressed his cheek to the top of her head and held her tight while she cried.

He had no idea how much time had passed, although he was sure they had both missed their afternoon classes. She had finally fallen asleep, but he was scared to lay her down, lest she wake and it start all over again.

It wasn't too much longer and she squirmed against him, waking. She looked up at him and tears filled her eyes again. "Baby, please," he whispered, "Don't cry. Tell me what happened."

She opened her mouth and then sighed. "So much has been buried for so long. It's never been spoken." Her voice cracked and was shaky. "I-they-it's been four years." Their eyes met and she silently begged him to figure it out so she didn't have to say it aloud.

"Four years since your family died?" he asked, finally seeming to understand.

"My parents, yes, and I lost my brother too, but not because he died." Henry thought on that a minute, and he was curious, but now wasn't the time to ask. Instead, he held her.

As darkness fell, Henry spoke. "Will you let me do something for you?" She looked at him blankly. "Let me care for you. I want to do that. Will you let me?" Finally she shrugged. "Okay, I'm going to run to my place real quick. Put your shoes on and go to the bathroom or whatever, and I'll be right back." He pushed the hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. "Will you be okay for a few minutes?" She nodded and climbed off of his lap.

Henry put his coat on and Elizabeth reached out and caught his hand. "Thank you," she whispered, tears still filling the corners of her eyes.

He squeezed her hand. "I'll be right back." He stepped out of Elizabeth's room and set off at a dead sprint. He ran through the building and all the way to his apartment. He dashed in and tossed his backpack on the couch as he raced into his bedroom and pulled the comforter from his bed. Then he headed out to his car.

He pulled up in front of the dorm and ran upstairs to get Elizabeth. Her door was cracked, but she wasn't inside. He turned just in time to see her walk up the hall. She had shoes on and she looked like she'd washed her face. "Do you need anything else?" Elizabeth shook her head. "Come," he said, taking her by the hand.

Henry left his car running right outside the door and he helped her in and wrapped his comforter around her before strapping her in. When he got in, she asked, "Where are we going?"

"I have a gas station stop planned to buy you a coffee, but other than that, you can tell me, or we'll just drive." She acknowledged him and slipped her fingers under his and linked them together.

"Okay," she said. He stopped at the gas station at the end of the block. He picked up a couple coffees, a bag of popcorn and a chocolate bar. He pondered a liquor purchase and decided against it. Once back on the car, he asked if she cared where they went. "No, just drive," she mumbled and that's what he did.

It was an hour before she spoke. Henry drove every back gravel road he could come up with and finally just took out on the interstate. They might make it to North Carolina by the time this was over, but it didn't matter. Not really.

She had her head pressed to the window, looking out into the darkness, watching the telephone poles race past barely able to be seen in the dim moonlight. "It was a car wreck," she started. "My parents and my brother. They went to get milkshakes." She turned suddenly and looked at him. "Who dies going to get a fucking milkshake?" She slumped back into the comforter and inhaled Henry's scent, finding it soothing. She muttered, "Only in my fucked up life would that happen."

"My brother and I never really got along that well. He was always a pest and I relished my place as the hateful older sister. We were just such different people. Mom always kind of squelched it and made us halfway tolerate each other. But once they died, he was just done with me. I tried at the beginning, but we were both hurting and we had no common ground to work from. Our aunt took guardianship, but she didn't really want us, so we went to the same boarding school. Being in a school with only 400 kids, one would think that we'd be forced to see each other, but that wasn't really the case. He didn't want to see me, so he didn't. Since I graduated, I've tried calling a few times, but he never returns my calls." Elizabeth pulled the comforter more tightly around her. "Mom and Dad being dead is awful. It's a pain that never fully goes away, but a lot of times it is just a dull ache in my chest-totally tolerable. But, knowing my brother is alive and he just hates me, that hurt is altogether different. It stabs at me at inconvenient times and keeps me awake at night." Henry squeezed her hand and she pulled away from him. "Am I so terrible that I don't deserve love? Will certainly thinks so."

Henry pulled off the interstate and parked. "Of course not. You're a wonderful person, but you aren't an easy person to love Elizabeth. You aren't very receptive to it most of the time, and you're always waiting for the other shoe to fall, so you won't invest yourself."

"I've been hurt too much. You don't understand."

"Perhaps not, but you aren't going to feel loved unless you allow someone to love you. You can't hold them at arm's length and then be surprised when that's all you get in return." He studied her, barely able to make out her features in the darkness and tried to decide if it was time to tell her. He turned his body to face her, reaching out to cup her cheek. "I am 100% head over heels in love with you Elizabeth Adams. I just hope that one day you'll decide that my love is worth having."

He watched the terror rip through her at his statement and he hoped that he hadn't permanently pushed her away. "Would you take me home?" she whispered, pulling away from him.

"Of course," he said. At the next exit, they turned around and started the 90 minute drive back to campus. She buried her face in the comforter and thought about all that Henry had said.

Henry stewed the entire drive home. What would he do if he had just completely pushed her out of his life for good? He'd told himself that he would be fine just being her friend, that friendship was better than nothing, but as his love for Elizabeth grew, it was becoming more difficult to be satisfied with just friendship, and now, who knew what he'd be left with.

When they finally reached the outskirts of Charlottesville, it was close to midnight. Elizabeth hadn't moved at all the last half hour and he thought she might be sleeping, but as they got closer to campus, Elizabeth reached out and grabbed Henry's hand. "Can I stay with you tonight?" Henry was surprised. "I just want to be close to you," she mumbled.

"Tonight?" Henry asked.

"Forever," Elizabeth replied.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Are we doing this for real?" Elizabeth asked, her hands wrapped around one of his, clutching it to her chest. He kissed the shell of her ear, keeping their naked bodies melded together in a single mass of flesh and appendages.

"I already told you I'm all in," Henry said, kissing her again.

"Since this is forever, I'm going to ask something of you. Something that's going to be hard, but I really want you to consider it."

"What's that?" he murmured, now placing his lips at the hairline along her neck

"I want you to call home and see if you can visit." Elizabeth felt his entire body tense behind her, and she quickly squirmed around to face him. "Henry, can I please try to explain? I have spent countless hours lamenting the choices I made in the days before my parents died. I was newly 15 and thought I was pretty self important. I said things that I wish with all my heart I could take back, but I will never have the opportunity. You can sit and stew with your righteous indignation all you want, but at some point, something's going to happen to them and your opportunity will be lost. We have a couple days off. I will go with you, and I'm not asking you to pretend you were never hurt. I'm just asking that you start the process of healing. Please, for me?"

"Damnit. How can I possibly say no to that?" She grinned and shimmied up his body, so she could kiss him. "Oh, just wait. Don't think this is going to be one-sided, Miss Adams. If I have to, you have to as well. How far are we from the boarding school?"

"Three hours, but it's a totally different thing. I have reached out and have nothing to show for it." Elizabeth was growing uncomfortable.

"We aren't calling. You are going to show up and I'll mediate if I need to, and I'll expect you to do the same for me with my parents."

Elizabeth exhaled slowly. She knew how it would go with Will, so she just needed to muddle through that and then Henry could make up with his parents.

"Okay. I'm going to shower and you call home." She pecked his lips and rolled over the top of him and out of the bed. When she emerged from the bathroom twenty minutes later, she found Henry staring at the phone. She moved to sit on the arm of the chair.

"You know, I tried to do this once before-right before the end of my freshman year. I thought I'd call and see if I could come home and try to make it right and then I remembered how my dad had been and I got angry all over again and I couldn't do it." Henry looked up at Elizabeth. "What if they don't want to see me?"

"If they don't, then they aren't worthy of you, and I'll never say another word. But, it's been a long time Henry. Anger fades." She wrapped her arm around his back.

Henry took a deep breath and balanced the receiver on his shoulder while he punched in the number. Then he waited. Elizabeth could hear the ring faintly through the receiver and the subsequent, "McCord residence."

Henry took a deep breath. He wasn't expecting his mother to answer. He figured it would be one of his siblings and he could buy some time talking to them. "Hello?" she said again.

"Hi. Mom." he took another breath. "It's H-"

"Henry," she sounded shocked and Henry wasn't sure if she would start screaming at him or just hang up but when she spoke again, he knew she was crying. "Henry. It's so good to hear your voice. How are you baby?"

"I'm good Mom. Um, I have a few days off for the Easter holiday. I was wondering if it would be okay to come and visit-maybe tonight or tomorrow?"

"We'd love to have you any amount of time you can stay. I-we've missed you so much. You're sure you're okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine. I promise. Is it okay if I bring someone with me?" Henry asked, not wanting to spring Elizabeth on them.

"Of course," she said. They made some small talk about logistics and Henry promised to phone when he had a more definite time for their arrival. As they got ready to hang up, his mom said, "I've been praying for this for a lot of years Henry. I'm so happy you are coming home."

Henry put the receiver into the cradle and stared at it. Elizabeth couldn't make out the entire conversation, but she felt like it went as well as could be expected, so she was a little perplexed by Henry's response. Then he banded his arm around her and pulled her into his lap, hugging her tight. When he looked at her, he had tears in his eyes. "Was I just so stupid? Could I have done this years ago?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe a number of things had to fall in place. I will say that if you had reconciled with your family earlier, I may never have met you." She gave him a kiss. "I'm glad that your call went well," she said, piling off his lap. "Now you need to pack so we can get to the school before 3, because Will has made plans for the holiday, I'm sure."

Henry pulled up to the Houghton Hall gate at 2:45 and when the speaker buzzed, Elizabeth leaned over Henry to speak, "Elizabeth Adams to see Will Adams." Within moments, the gate creaked open and Henry drove through. Elizabeth directed Henry to a visitors' parking space and they got out.

Elizabeth slipped her hand into Henry's as he looked around in awe, commenting on how beautiful the school was. She smirked and headed up the steps. Will sat in a chair near the secretary and he was completely taken aback by Elizabeth walking through the door.

"Lizzie!" he exclaimed. "They didn't tell me it was you."

She laughed, "Do you have a lot of people coming to see you?"

He stared at her. "No. I really didn't know who it might be." He stood awkwardly and shuffled toward Elizabeth and hugged her. "How come you're here?"

"I just came to say hi. I figured you had plans, but I had a free weekend, so Henry and I dropped by. Oh, by the way, this is Henry McCord." Elizabeth stepped to the side, so Henry could shake hands with Will.

"Are you the boyfriend?" Will asked, his eyebrows arched in disbelief. Henry grinned and nodded. "Yeah, good luck with that. She's a bear in the morning."

Henry's smile was wide. "I know. She's awful!"

"Hey, hey. We aren't turning this into a bash session." Both men laughed. "You want to take a walk?" Will looked at the clock and nodded, indicating he had a little time. All three walked out, but Henry gestured to the car and started walking off that way.

"So how are you doing?" she asked.

Will shrugged. "Fine I guess. Are you alright?" She nodded. "Is Henry the real deal?"

"Yeah," she murmured.

"Good. He takes care of you?" Elizabeth chuckled and looked away. "No, really Lizzie."

Elizabeth watched her feet move forward one in front of the other. "He wants to," she said. "He says I have trouble with that."

"Whaaaaat? Lizzie Adams has trouble relinquishing control. I just find that hard to believe." Will feigned shock.

"Don't be an ass."

"Don't be stupid," Will countered. "Let him in. Lean on him. God, you would love nothing more than to micromanage every detail of my life, But you won't let someone love you? You can't give in just a little?"

"Right! I totally micromanage you. Fuck that! I haven't even talked to you in months."

"Because I cut you out. I had to because you wouldn't listen, at all, ever. It's always been your way or the highway, and I just can't live like that."

"You were 13!"

"You were 15! It's not like you had that much more life experience to draw upon. You were a nerdy, hermit for God's sake. I've never been you LIzzie and I never will be. It doesn't matter what I do, you will always be better. Are you satisfied? Do you think I don't know that? I've always known." He turned back and started back toward the building.

"Wait! Will, stop!" Will stopped walking, but he didn't turn around. "I don't think I'm better. Well maybe I did when we were young, but I guess I've got some more life experience now. We're different. That doesn't make me better." She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I made you feel that way." She stepped closer to him. "I'm tired of being alone Will. Please don't cut me out. I promise, I'll try to back off and not micromanage you. I just want you to talk to me."

Will turned, slinging his arm over her shoulders and pulled her to his side. "I suppose I could talk to you. You're a giant pain in the ass, you know that right?" She gave him a shove. "Hey, what? This is me talking to you." They walked most of the way back in silence. "I am looking at Columbia for college, pre-med."

"Really? Medicine? That's a lot."

Will's face fell as he broke away from her. "You don't think I can do it."

"No, that's not what I said. I think you'd make a very good doctor, because you think on the fly. I'm too methodical, I have to ponder and think through everything. I would take too much time and be ineffective. I only meant that it's a big commitment, not that you couldn't do it. I think you'll do it and do it well." Elizabeth reached out and caught Will's hand, squeezing it.

"Thanks, sis. Look, I'm going to spend Easter with Jesse's family. I need to get going pretty soon." Elizabeth hugged Will.

"Have fun. And please return my calls. I just want to check in and I'll try hard not to tell you what to do to."

"Good luck with Henry. Let go of the control a little. You could do with being a little less high strung." She shrugged as she walked toward Henry.

"Bye, Will. I love you."

"Bye, Lizzie. I kinda half-ass tolerate you." Will snickered. "Just teasing. Love you too. Nice to meet you Henry." Will skipped up the steps and went inside.

Henry wrapped Elizabeth in his arms and hugged her. "Looks like that went okay?" He looked hopeful.

"Yeah, it was pretty good. Will says I need to let you take care of me, and let go of my need to control everything."

"I knew there was a reason I liked the kid." She elbowed him. "Let's go babe. We've got a long drive ahead." Henry held the door for her and before she got in, she leaned in and kissed him. Then she slipped inside the car. Henry looked at her and grinned. "You are a tease."

As they made the trek to Henry's hometown of Pittsburgh, he felt like Elizabeth was a different person. She just seemed lighter. He reached over and placed his hand on her thigh. She immediately changed her position and leaned over the console to rest against his arm. He wasn't sure exactly what transpired between the Adams siblings, but this was the most relaxed he'd ever seen Elizabeth, and he liked it.

They stopped for dinner and Henry called his house and spoke with his sister, telling her that they were still three hours out. She was super excited to see him and he was starting to get nervous, but was excited, which made Elizabeth happy. They pulled up in front of the house a little before 10pm. Elizabeth looked over at Henry and was surprised to find that he had tears in his eyes. "What can I do for you?" she asked.

"Just be with me," Henry whispered. They walked hand in hand up the walk. Henry seemed unsure what to do when he reached the door. Elizabeth reached out and knocked, and went up on her toes to peck him on the cheek. He smiled at her.

The door flew open and Henry was tackled by a teenage girl. "Erin, whoa!" She wouldn't let him go. "I've missed you so much! Come on!" She pulled him into the house and Elizabeth followed. "He's here," Erin called.

Henry's brother, Shane, came jogging down the stairs, and led with his hand, but as they shook hands, Shane pulled Henry into a hug. "Missed you brother."

"Where's Maureen and Mom and Dad?" Henry asked.

"Maureen's at work and Mom and Dad are in the kitchen. I think they were hoping to get us out of the way." Henry introduced Elizabeth to his siblings and they made small talk for a few minutes.

Elizabeth reached out and tugged Henry's shirt sleeve, gesturing to the couple standing in the doorway of what she guessed was the kitchen.

"Mom. Dad. Hi," he said, his voice measured and even. "I'd like to introduce you to my girlfriend, Elizabeth Adams."

Elizabeth was quick to smile and extend her hand. "It's nice to meet you Mr. and Mrs. McCord. I look forward to getting to know you."

"Please call me Sandy, and this is Patrick. Won't you have a seat?" She reached out like she wanted to hug Henry, but he turned a bit and Sandy squeezed his shoulder instead. "You've been on the road quite a while. Can I get you something to drink?" They both shook their heads and sat down on the couch.

Henry sat straight on the couch. "This is quite a bit harder than I thought it would be. I know there were lots of things said on both sides, but it's been a long time, and I would like to put it behind us, so we can be a family again."

"We've been a family the whole time Henry," Patrick said, bitterly. Sandy gave him a look. Elizabeth wanted to laugh. It was obvious that Patrick wasn't reacting the way that Sandy wanted.

"Yeah, I get that. I was the one that stayed away. I take the blame for that. Someone recently convinced me that it was important to try again." He placed his hand over Elizabeth's. "So I called, thank you for letting me come back."

"You were never not welcome," Sandy said, wiping a tear from her eye.

"You just didn't want to listen to reason," Patrick said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I know you don't agree with my decisions, but those have already been made, and I'm doing okay. I didn't come back to ask you for anything other than a relationship. I make okay money and I'll be going into the military soon, and that will be my life for a while, but there's a plan. Can we please move beyond your disappointment in me?"

"We were never disappointed in you," Sandy started.

"No, you weren't Mom, but I always have been a disappointment to Dad, because I'm not him. It's not a big deal. I've learned to live with that."

"The disappointment wasn't in you. It was in the difference between what I hoped would be and what was. All of the guys at the mill had sons who followed them. It's a good job. It's an honest living. All those young guys were happy to have the opportunity. I wanted that for me, for both of us, but you acted like it was the worst thing ever, like it was beneath you. Everything I had worked for wasn't good enough for you. You wanted the fancy school with the fancy education, trying to be more than what you came from. You didn't want our life. It was a slap in the face." Patrick looked defeated.

"Dad," Henry sighed. "It was never about me thinking your life wasn't good enough. It was about me doing what would make me happy. I'm sorry, but your life wouldn't make me happy, and it's not that there's anything wrong with your life. It's just that we are different people and get enjoyment out of different things. And it's not about a fancy education, hobnobbing with rich people or whatever you said back then. I want to teach. To teach, I needed to go to college, and because I didn't have the money to go to college, I had to go through ROTC. I got the best offer from UVA. I've done well. My schooling has been paid for. I'm in graduate school and they pay me to help teach a couple classes. I'm going to try to get into flight school. Can you please try to be happy for me, or at the very least, not be disgusted by me?"

"I'm glad that you are doing well," Patrick said, "And I hate that I made you feel like you couldn't come home."

"We," said Sandy, "But I hope that we can try to get along or at least talk more rationally so we don't make this mistake again."

Henry glanced over to the TV, which was airing the baseball game, but had the sound turned all the way down. "Who's winning?"

"Tied in the seventh. I don't think they are going to amount to much this season. We'll see." Once Henry and Patrick turned their attention to the game and seemed to be on an even keel, Sandy motioned to Elizabeth to follow her to the kitchen. Elizabeth squeezed Henry's hand and cocked her head toward the kitchen. He nodded and she rose, following Sandy.

Sandy pulled out a chair for Elizabeth and poured her a glass of lemonade, setting it in front of her on the table. "Okay, I've missed over five years of my son's life. How many pieces can you fill in?"

"Probably not too many I'm afraid. I only really got to know him over Thanksgiving break this past year, and we started dating about six weeks ago." Sandy didn't look impressed, but Elizabeth forged ahead. "Things I do know. You raised a wonderful man. He is very caring and compassionate. Henry's grades are top notch and he got his pick of teaching assistant positions because he was sought after by all of the religion professors. He's an excellent cook. If you are responsible, thank you. We hike quite a bit, and he's an absolute terrible fisherman, but I'm working on that."

"Do you live together?" she asked.

Elizabeth shook her head, "No ma'am. I've been pretty standoffish about this whole relationship thing. My brother, Will, might have convinced me otherwise though. We stopped and saw him on the way here. Evidently I have a control thing that I need to work on." She gave Sandy a self deprecating smirk.

"So you are making the family circuit over the holiday?" Sandy eyed Elizabeth in a way that sort of made her feel like she was being cross examined, but she was at least kind about it.

"Family is really important to me and Henry told me pretty early on that he hadn't seen you since he left for school. That was something that I just couldn't wrap my brain around, so I asked him to call and try to mend his relationship with you. Of course, Henry is all about fairness, so he said that if he did, I had to also, so we went to see my brother, because I sort of have a strained relationship with him too, but I think we made some progress." Elizabeth shrugged, hoping she said the right thing. She wanted Henry's mom to like her.

"So you made Henry call, because you wanted him to have his family back?" Sandy asked.

"I didn't make him. I encouraged him, and he was so happy after he got off the phone. I think it was the right time." She wasn't expecting it, but suddenly Sandy hugged her and didn't let her go.

"Thank you for bringing him home." When Sandy pulled away, she wiped away a tear, and noticed Elizabeth's shocked state. "Sorry. I've just been praying for so many years, and I was struggling to keep the faith. I was about to give up hope that we'd ever see Henry again and then out of the blue, he called this morning."

"I just know what it's like not to have family, and if you have family, you should do what you can to be close to them, even if they are a pain in the ass, which is what my brother called me today."

Sandy looked at her curiously. "What's your story?" she finally asked.

"I'm from Virginia, but had to go to boarding school away from home for high school and I'm a freshman now at UVA. I have a full scholarship and so far, I'm doing well. I'm a math major, and that's about it. I spend a lot of time studying. I'm not much on the party scene. Henry and I play a lot of Scrabble, if that shows you my level of party animal."

Sandy chuckled softly. "So, you have a brother named Will. Any other siblings?" Elizabeth shook her head in response. She could feel the question coming and she tried to brace herself. But just like falling down a flight of stairs, the jarring is more intense when you try to brace yourself. "And your parents?" The weight of the question crashed into her with force. She let out a shaky breath.

"My parents died in a car accident four years ago. My aunt is our guardian, but she purposely chose not to pursue motherhood when she was of an age to, so she wasn't all that thrilled about inheriting two teenagers when her brother died. That's how we ended up in boarding school."

"I am very sorry for your loss."

"Thank you," Elizabeth replied, awkwardly. She never knew exactly what to say to those comments.

"How did the two of you meet?" Elizabeth told her about staying on campus alone and Henry in the library and how he made her an excellent lunch and how they hit it off quickly. Sandy smiled, revelling in the animated retelling Elizabeth provided. A tear slipped down her cheek and didn't go unnoticed by Elizabeth, who immediately asked what was wrong.

"I spent all of this time praying for something to happen, and now, I can't believe it. Not only did Henry return but he brought the love of his life and now we get to love you too," she said looking into Elizabeth's eyes.

Elizabeth grew uncomfortable under Sandy's intense gaze. "Uh, I don't know about all of that." Elizabeth tried to sidestep that issue, but Sandy pressed her.

"You brought him back, and because of that, you my dear Elizabeth, will always find this home to be a refuge for you. If it weren't for you having the conversation, I don't think Henry would be here. That being said, the McCords aren't always the easiest people to get alone with, so I will be your champion. I wield a fair amount of weight around here. She grinned. "So how do you feel about baseball?"

"I'm more of a golf and football kind of girl, but given the exchange in there, I think I'm about to learn," Elizabeth said. Sandy rose from her chair and suggested they join the men in the living room. Elizabeth moved to sit next to Henry, who rested his hand on her thigh pulling her close.

At the commercial break, Henry whispered. "Thank you for pushing me to do this."

Elizabeth cuddled into his shoulder. "Sometimes you have to force your heart to move forward at the same rate as your feet."

Madam Secretary Prompt: Henry cuts off ties with his entire family when he leaves for college, and only at Elizabeth's insistence after they've been dating for a while does he try to mend fences.

AN: Well folks, this is it. I hope you've enjoyed this story. Please let me know what you think. As always, thank you for the encouraging comments you've posted. Your kind words are truly a bright spot in my days.


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